Picturing the route – the multimodal representation of time and space in tourism discourse

Abstract This study investigates the multimodal representation of time and space in print and digital tourism texts, focusing on the interplay between text and image. Using Multimodal Discourse Analysis, it examines how tourism discourse employs various semiotic modes – primarily graphic and visual – to transform sites into sights and influence potential tourist’s choices. Tourism texts are not only multimodal but also dialogical, specialized and promotional. Building on prior research on the persuasive and rhetorical functions of tourism discourse, the paper analyses how visual and verbal elements are combined to evoke destination imagery, convey emotional values, provide sensory immediacy, and shape tourist experiences. These multimodal constructions engage the tourist gaze, a sociocultural process shaping how destinations are viewed through established patterns. The study further explores how these processes manifest in representations of temporal and spatial contrasts between everyday life and vacation, portrayals of distance and proximity, and the integration of time and space with markers of identity.